The Guardian
by dreamiestnightmare13
Summary: Danger. It is what Pepper has lived with since that fateful day all those years ago... An ultimate secret that defined her, followed her, kept her looking over her shoulder. What happens when that secret finds her?


**A/N: This is my first Iron Man Fanfic. The characters and plots are based on the movie but their looks are based on the comics. Why you might ask. Well, honestly, imagine Tony Stark with icy blue eyes. *All girls begin to drool* Point exactly. **

**Oh, and Tony Stark and Robert Downey Jr. belong to me. They are MINE! ALL MINE! *Smiles evilly* Bwhaha *Copyright SWAT team starts raiding in***

**AHHHHHHH! Okay! Okay! Iron Man is not mine! It belongs to the Marvel people! *pause and grins* But Robert Downey Jr. **_**is**_** mine.**

**Also I do not own the lyrics of Battlefield by Jordan Sparks. And yes, for those who are really picky about this sorta thing, the lyrics are not in the order of the song but it had a more fitting purpose this way.**

**Okay enough rambling. Now on with the story. **

_Can't swallow our pride_

_Neither of us wanna raise that flag_

_If we can't surrender then we both gonna lose _

_What we had, oh no_

_Why does love always feel like a battlefield _

_A battlefield, a battlefield? _

_Why does love always feel like a battlefield_

_A battlefield, a battlefield?_

_I guess you better go and get your armor_

Chapter 1: Battlefield

It was a typical, peaceful early morning in Malibu, California. This city was tranquil scene of predictability, which is very much appreciated by those who visited the serene slice of heaven. The weather was beautiful and perfect as usual which was to be expected by locals. To outsiders, it was a utopian sight of paradise, with its soft, white sandy beaches and its crystal-clear, blue ocean water. The sun's rays, usually lighting up the town, hid behind the earth in the early hours of the day. The tropical scenery surrounded the coastline, palm trees swaying gently in the occasional light breeze that would be the only thing that would interrupt the otherwise peaceful atmosphere.

"DAMN IT, TONY!"

Well, that and billionaire Anthony Edward "Tony" Stark pissing off his personal assistant…yet again.

"How many times do I have to tell you? I do not need a freaking bodyguard!"

"What? Is it so wrong to give a damn about your safety?"

Virginia "Pepper" Potts rolled her eyes again for the umpteenth time that day at her boss. It wasn't like her to be angered by him so easily. Usually she would just pass it off with a witty comeback. Something that would display her usual combination of professionalism and friendliness. Uh uh. Not today. Not today at 4:47 in the damn morning. Not when she had been up for over 50 hours straight, she hadn't eaten anything since lunch _yesterday_, and to top it all off, this was her PMS week. And now her boss was ignoring every subtle hint and gesture she had tried to kindly throw his way that she did not want to have this discussion now. All and all, it was a bad combination. "You don't care about my safety so don't try to fake otherwise. We all know that all you care about is your damn bloated ego."

Tony pretended to look wounded at her snarling words. "I care about you too, Peps."

"Oh, do not try cutesy nicknames on me, Mr. Stark. Not right now. And try not to lie to me either while you are at it," she shot back, letting all the cliché of a red-head's temper loose.

It seemed this time, it was clear that she had finally gotten to Tony. His normally warm ocean blue eyes flashed in an angry icy fire. Had she not been so pissed, she would have probably would have flinched. Never had he looked at her with such a look of rage before. "Well, I can't keep saving your ass every time you get yourself into trouble."

_Oh, he did not—_ "'_I_ get myself into trouble'? Are you freaking kidding me? If you hadn't made that stupid suit in the first place, I wouldn't have anything to need saving from!"

"And if I hadn't made that 'stupid suit', I wouldn't be here to have this fucking argument with you in the first place!" he yelled back, standing only inches away from her.

"You wouldn't had to have made it if you hadn't gone to show off your newest weapon of mass destruction! I mean, what made this presentation oh so special? I can't even get you to move your ass four blocks to Stark International for a B.O.D. meeting and yet, you can go all the way to Afghanistan happily taking a beer cooler with you?"

Tony glowered at her with a mocking sneer on his face. "My apologies, Miss Potts, for giving a slight damn more about our troops' safety and arms in battle than your precious little business meeting."

She looked pointedly at his arc reactor, which was glowing brighter than usual at the increased beating of his heart. "And look how great that worked out for you."

That certainly struck a nerve. A very tender one, judging by his now shaking arms from clenched fists and the sort of growling noise that emitted his throat. "Miss Potts, I would advise you to leave. Now." He turned away as if dismissing her and began stalking towards the direction of his workshop.

Pepper, who was not the least bit intimidated by her boss, stood her ground. "No." He stopped storming over to the staircase. He didn't turn, but she still knew she had his full attention. "Because I have work to do. Because there's a business that needs to be run in case you . And since no one around here seems to be able to do just that, I'm stuck with it."

She waited for him to respond. When he didn't she continued on with her rampage. "_Mr. Stark_, this is your company too! Or did you just happen to miss that big sign on the front of that huge building in the middle of the city that says '_Stark_ International'?"

"I am very well aware of that fact, Miss Potts."

She laughed a humorless laugh. "Oh, _really_? Then why don't you try running it ever once in a while? Oh, yeah! Because you don't know a DAMN THING ABOUT IT!"

"Oh, well, in that case, I must deeply apologize, Miss Potts. I'm so fucking sorry that making agendas and attending meetings isn't above 'helping save the world' on my priority list," he snarled sarcastically. "And you _will _have a bodyguard. That is an order, not a request or suggestion. Leave or I will fire you." Tony then turned on his heels and disappeared into his man-cave.

Once Pepper was sure he was gone, she collapsed onto the large, plush white sofa in a heap. The verbal battle between her and Tony had taken an emotional toll on her, draining her of energy. She curled up in a ball with her knees to her chest like she used to do when she was younger, crossing her arms over her knees as if to protect herself. _Or her heart._ After a few minutes, a mechanical British voice came on above her.

**Is everything alright, Miss Potts? I couldn't help but happen to overhear the fight. **

Pepper sat up right, trying to regain composure. "Um, JARVIS, yeah, I'm-I'm okay. I'm just feeling..a bit tired."

**May I presume that it has to do with your emotional confusion that you are experiencing right now? **

It wasn't surprising that JARVIS hadn't believed her, considering that Pepper hadn't even believed her own crappy explanation. "Well—"

She could almost hear a sigh. **Miss Potts, I know Mr. Stark may be somewhat of an—what's the proper phrase? oh, yes—assclown at times, but he does have the best intentions.** At Pepper's silent answer, he added.** Enjoy the rest of your morning, Miss Potts.**

Pepper sat on the sofa, mentally trying to organize her thoughts. It was a calming mechanism that she used when she was younger. And she loved organization. It made her more professional and more efficient. Everything went well if it was organized. Organized like a mission…like her life has been ever since—

Her head shot up. She knew precisely what to do.

_Fine_. If he wanted her to have a goddamn bodyguard then dammit she was gonna choose who was guarding her.

A slow smile that could only be described to onlookers as one that was mischievous and evil. Pepper pulled out her cell phone and dialed the one number that had never failed to disappoint or let her down ever. After a few rings, a familiar and friendly voice answered in a bored sounding tone.

_You rang, Pepsi? _

Pepper smiled a real smile at the sound her childhood nickname. "Yeah, AJ, I need a favor."

_That favor wouldn't happen to be pretending but not really pretending to be your bodyguard since I'm already your unofficially official personal guardian in order to get back at your bastard boss, Tony Stark, who has taken it upon himself to be an extreme pain in the ass of late over this whole issue that really isn't an issue?_

At her shocked silence, her friend added almost guiltily. _When I said I was your guardian, I meant that I would be tracking your movements to assure your safety. At all times._ There was a slight pause._ I might add that I'm sorry if you feel that I have invaded your, erm, personal life too much. It's part of my job description, Peps. _There was another pause. _I might also add that your boss's firewall was almost as big of a bitch as his nightly whores are to hack through. _

Had she not been so shocked over this, Pepper probably would have laughed. "AJ—I mean, how did you—"

_Well, let's just say that I'm very lucky that JARVIS is really understanding and good at keeping secrets. _

Pepper held her phone away from her ear, looking at it incredulously for a brief moment before she started laughing hysterically. _"_My god, I've missed you._"_

_I've missed you too, my dear friend._ The connection was cut soon after that. Pepper smiled, noting to herself to have a long talk with JARVIS when Tony wasn't there.

Hundreds of miles away in a mansion hidden under a rock formation in an island of unknown whereabouts to the modern world, Andrea-Jade Storm smiled a true grin for the first time in years. "Time to pack," she said happily to the silence around her.

**A/N: Please review :)**

**Ta ta,**

**Dreamiest Nightmare**


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